


Cat and Mouse

by Failing_Physics



Category: DreamSMP, Minecraft (Video Game)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Emotional Manipulation, Gen, Heavy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Psychological Horror, This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, friend uses he/they pronouns and you can pry this information from my cold dead hands, these minecraft men live rent free in my head, this is obviously all about characters and not the real people
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-04
Updated: 2021-01-05
Packaged: 2021-03-14 04:00:19
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28539246
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Failing_Physics/pseuds/Failing_Physics
Summary: If Tommy had never spoken to him like that at the portal than maybe Dream wouldn't be having as much fun hunting Tommy down in this forest_______Or, my first attempt at writing creeping horror
Relationships: Clay | Dream & TommyInnit (Video Blogging RPF)
Comments: 28
Kudos: 169





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I had so much fun writing this, I hope you enjoy it as well. Its my first proper attempt at phycological horror and I think it went pretty well.  
> I know what the tags say, but this is NOT RPF. This is strictly about the characters, not the ccs

Tommy was outside when Ghostbur told him Dream was coming. He had been in the middle of building a second cobblestone tower which would once and for all assert his status as a Big Man around Technoblade when Ghostbur drifted out of the trees, Friend trotting along behind him. Even perched on his tower, high above the ground, Tommy could see how the ghost was wringing his hands anxiously, a piece of blue in them that was only getting bluer the longer Tommy stared. Something was wrong. 

That thought alone sent a tremor of worry down his spine as Tommy jumped, breaking his fall with a water bucket. As soon as he came into view, Ghostbur’s anxious demeanor evaporated and he smiled. 

“Tommy! Please, have some blue.” Pressing the blue into Tommy’s fingers, Ghostbur turned back to Friend, tugging them along, suddenly looking for all the world a picture of contentment.

“Thanks… is everything okay?” 

Ghostbur turned, eyes abruptly full with fear as his face screwed up - like he was trying desperately to recall a memory. 

“Yes! Yes, there is something wrong!” Ghostbur started and then stopped as if he’d bitten his tongue. 

“Yeah?” Tommy prompted, raising an eyebrow against the flood of anxiety that filled him. There was only one person Ghostbur feared. 

“I - I can’t tell you or he said he’d hurt Friend.” Ghostbur’s voice broke off with a sob and he hugged Friend tightly. 

“Who? Who Ghostbur?” Tommy demanded, though he already knew.  _ Dream, Dream, Dream,  _ his heart sung as Tommy tried to crush equal feelings of terror and relief.  _ “Dream’s coming here?”  _

“Yes,” Ghostbur whispered with a stricken expression. Tommy knew he was wearing a similar one as he bolted towards the house.  _ Techno wasn’t here.  _ The thought hit Tommy like a physical blow and he almost stumbled into the snow. Yesterday - at the portal with Dream - he had been so fucking  _ cocky.  _ Yelling at him, telling him to go fuck himself, but only because Techno was right behind him with that silent, unwavering strength. And menace. The menace definitely helped. Here, he was alone, defenceless -  _ Dream was going to kill him.  _

Tommy clamped down on the anxiety hard, focusing on steading his breathing like Techno had taught him, It sort of helped clear the fog in Tommy’s brain. No. He wasn’t completely vulnerable. Techno wasn’t here, but his house certainly was - an invis potion, that was all Tommy needed. And then he would be gone like the wind. Yeah.  _ Yeah.  _ This was a flawless plan. 

Tommy shoved open the doors to his house, not bothering to shut them as he lunged for the chest that contained the potions. The dusty bottles clinked as he rummaged through them, pulling out one after another. Fuck, had they run out of invis yesterday? But Tommy sighed in relief as he pulled out a single lilac bottle, proceeding to down it in one, only grimacing slightly at the bitter aftertaste. A sort of cold tingling swept over him as the invisibility took hold and, fuck, it was always disorientating to try and walk and not being able to see your feet. Stumbling a few steps to try and get his bearings, Tommy almost missed the sounds of the basement door opening. 

“Tommy!”

Tommy was stupid. So fucking stupid for thinking that he was in control of this situation when the moment that light voice reached his ears, his heart started to pound out of his chest, so loudly he was certain the man downstairs could hear it. Out of anger or fear or maybe both, Tommy couldn’t tell. 

“Tommy, I know that you’re here.” 

Oh, Dream thought he was the shit didn’t he. He had manipulated Tommy just for kicks, hunted him and now he had the nerve to be fucking  _ condescending.  _ Like he was talking to a badly behaved child. Or a dog. And Tommy was neither. The anger that swept through him was almost surprising and he tightened his grip on his sword. He would  _ not  _ go back. Even if Tommy’s hands were itching to take off his armour. Dream never liked it when he wore armour. Maybe, he should take it off… But Techno had given him this armour - what the hell was Tommy doing even considering what Dream wanted?

“Yo bitch! Catch me first!” Tommy yelled to the floor, to the basement, to Dream, before lunging for the door and taking the steps outside three at a time. The air was refreshingly freezing and Tommy noticed that Ghostbur and Friend were nowhere to be seen. Smart. As smart as Tommy wished he’s just been. Dream never liked it when Tommy was loud. But then again, act first, think later was Tommy’s motto and it wasn’t like Dream had the capacity to get  _ more  _ pissed at Tommy after everything he’d done. So fuck that green bastard. Let him get as pissed as he wanted. 

The spruce forest ahead made Tommy grin with nothing less than glee. How long had he spent wandering around these trees, cutting them down? He knew this place like the back of his hand. And now it was becoming dusk, the mobs that were spawning would cover up any sounds he made. Damn. He was  _ really  _ good at making plans. 

“Tommy, do you really think that you can hide from me?” 

Tommy could hear the smile in Dream’s voice and his hands clenched - Dream sounded closer than he should’ve been and Tommy instinctively checked the time left on the invisibility. Four minutes. That was fine. It was fine. Enough time to escape Dream. Hopefully. 

The snow crunched under his feet as he sprinted deeper and deeper into the forest, ears strained for any sound of Dream. But that man moved stealthier than anything on this damn server and Tommy knew he’d never hear him coming. He knocked a branch with his shoulder and the resulting shower of snow from the tree made him jump back with an indignant ‘shit!’ before he had time to slap a hand over his mouth. 

“Tommy!” Dream’s voice was almost playful now, as if he was enjoying this game of cat and mouse. 

Three minutes left on the invisibility. 

Tommy backed away from the voice, shaking his head furiously to dislodge the snow that had been dumped on him. Fuck, it was cold out here. A rustle to his right sent Tommy pressing himself against the rough bark of a tree as Dream passed not even two metres from Tommy’s hiding place. And this time when Tommy placed a hand over his mouth it was to muffle any sound of breathing. 

“Tommy, that invis potion won't last forever you know. Stop acting like a stupid child and just come out. I won’t even be angry.” 

Dream knew what was best for him, Dream would tell him what to do, Dream -  _ no.  _ No. That was just Dream’s manipulation screwing with his head. Wasn’t it? 

Two minutes left. 

Tommy had started to shake, definitely from the cold. Nothing to do with that green bitch stalking the forest. He tried to dredge up any of that anger that had given him such confidence a few minutes ago, but now there was only terror and bottomless cold remaining. 

“You’re being such a bad friend, you know that? I visited you, gave you armour, helped you mine and  _ this  _ is how you treat me? I have been nothing but gracious to you. And you betray me like this? I’m starting to realise why Tubbo exiled you.” 

Tommy screwed his eyes up, trying hard not to cry. That would be a sign of weakness and Tommy was anything but that. Instead, he chose to retreat deeper and deeper into the trees, every footstep painfully loud. 

One minute. 

“Tommy, this is for your own good. Don’t even try to run, I know that invis potion must be almost gone by now.” 

Dream was right, the effects of the potions were waning fast and so was Tommy’s willpower. It was so cold. How was Dream not affected by it? By now it had wormed its way through Tommy’s jacket and made a home deep under his skin. Dream was so close, Tommy could feel eyes upon him, but no matter which way he turned, there was always nothing there. He could only watch with growing horror as his fingertips slowly became visible, then his forearms, thighs, torso and finally his face. If he tried to run Dream would hear him. If he tried to hide, Dream would find him. Fuck.

Techno’s house was to his right, Tommy knew that much. So maybe if he was  _ really  _ stealthy, he could make it back, ignoring, of course, how he could barely curl his fingers or toes anymore.  _ Why couldn't Techno have moved somewhere tropical at least.  _ Tommy dared to start sneaking towards it, all too acutely aware of how visible he was. 

“Found you.” The voice was soft and Tommy twisted to see Dream directly behind him. His fingers tried to grip his sword and failed. 

“Dream, please -”

“You had to try and run didn’t you.”

“I’m not going anywhere with you.”

“And who is going to stop me? Techno certainly isn't here and it looks like Wilbur’s abandoned you. Again.” 

“His name is  _ Ghostbur _ .”

Dream was silent for a moment and, purely on instinct, Tommy cringed. When Dream was silent, it meant he was angry. 

“Tommy, I’ve done all of this for your own good. I’m your  _ friend  _ but no, you had to go and betray me. Look, you’re even wearing armour that you didn’t earn.” 

Tommy’s fingers fumbled at the straps of his chestplate, but they were too numb to properly detach it and hot tears ran down his cheek. Maybe if he just gave Dream what he wanted, the man would leave Tommy alone. 

“See, that’s progress. Look how much easier it is to be my friend than to childishly rebel against me.” 

Dream held out his hand expectantly and Tommy just stared at it. Every instinct was screaming, yelling, at him to take that hand, to accept his fate, but if he did, then everything Techno had done for him would be useless. He hadn’t spent weeks hiding Tommy, helping him, putting up with his magnificent cobblestone towers for Tommy to just walk back to Dream. 

“Leave me alone!” Tommy exploded, stumbling back a few paces. “Just, fucking,  _ leave.  _ I’m not your fucking friend! You hunt me and you manipulate me and you hurt me over and fucking over. I’m not in L’Manberg, I’m not in the DreamSMP so can you just  _ fuck off _ !” 

Everything about Dream’s demeanor suddenly soured.

“I see.”

And before Tommy could run he yanked out a bright blue splash potion that the boy didn’t recognise and threw it at Tommy’s feet. Almost immediately, Tommy began to feel dazed and confused, swaying a little before collapsing forward into Dream’s arms. 

“Don’t fight it Tommy, just don’t.” 

Tommy wasn’t sure he could as waves after waves of dizziness slammed into him, smothering him, holding him under until he drowned. 

___________

It was bright and warm and peaceful where Tommy was and he didn’t want to leave the comfort of his bed, but some persistent anxiety in the back of his mind wouldn’t let him rest. That was fine though, it was late morning and probably time to get up - the great thing about living with Techno was that he didn’t complain when Tommy slept in til noon. Tommy cracked open his eyes, the calming sounds of the ocean filling his ears as he smiled, trying to push passed the fog in his mind. Wait - ocean? Him and Techno lived in the tundra, not next to the sea, so that couldn’t be right. The anxiety in the back of his mind grew larger and larger until Tommy sat up, eyes widening in absolute horror as he recognised Logsteadshire.

And the giant wall of obsidian that surrounded it, completely locking Tommy in. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dream starts the process of breaking down Tommy again

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Get ready for some angst lads  
> TW: panic attacks, physical abuse
> 
> And damn I didn't think this would get this popular, so thank you guys so much!

Tommy lurched to his feet, eyes tracing the wall up and up and up, so impossibly high. Every direction, everywhere he looked, the wall reared up, trapping him, sealing him in. It was like a tomb. Like a cage. Dream’s way of making sure he was never going to run away again. Tommy, scrambled to his feet, hands lunging for a sword that was not there. Of course, Dream had taken it, along with his armour.  _ Technoblade’s  _ armour. He might not have earnt it but it had been a gift - not a pity gift, but an actual gift. Now he was defenceless. And alone. 

The walls suddenly seemed like they were pushing in on him, suffocating him. He was trapped in Logstedshire, trapped with the crater holes and that fucking pillar and  _ Dream.  _ And oh god, those  _ walls  _ were so close, pressing in on him out of the corners of his vision and suddenly it was hard to breathe. Really hard. Techno was away with Phil, he would take days to get back and realise that Tommy was gone. Days.  _ Days with just Dream.  _ No. Tommy couldn’t go through that again, this time it would break him, he knew that, deep down. Maybe if he’d just listened to Dream, maybe if he had been better then this wouldn’t be happening. Maybe… maybe… maybe…

Tommy suddenly realised he was crying, gasping for air that did nothing to ease the feeling that he was suffocating, like he was drowning. Like those mornings when he’d wake up in Logstedshire and find himself in the ocean, so far beneath the surface, and  _ not be able to breathe.  _ The walls were too fucking high, too fucking close, the purple glint of obsidian reminding him of the final control room, of Dream and of small tight spaces where he couldn’t move or think or  _ breathe.  _

**Dream joined the game**

Dream, oh fuck, Dream hated it when he cried, when he was loud, and now he was trapped with the man, with no way of escaping or running or -

“Tommy, stop crying.” 

Tommy hadn’t even realised that Dream was there until the shadow fell across him from where he had fallen to his knees. Though Tommy couldn’t see his face, he looked pissed. Probably because Tommy was crying. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to remember what Techno had taught him. Something about counting your breaths. Yeah, something like that. In, out, in, out. It was almost easy to ignore Dream standing before him. It was almost easy to form coherent thoughts. That was, until, Dream grabbed the front of his shirt, yanking him off the ground and into the air in one swift movement. Instinctively, Tommy’s hands moved to grab his sword, swearing when his fingers met empty air. Dream just tutted at him.

“When are you going to learn Tommy? You can’t fight me.” 

A million and one responses raged through Tommy’s head, ranging from ‘bitch!’ to numerous apologies. Maybe it would be easier to think if his brain wasn’t flipping between depressed and defiance at lightning speed. He stayed silent, not meeting Dream’s face. The man just sighed and dropped him onto the floor. 

“You see these walls Tommy? They’re made from the same obsidian that the ones around L’Manberg were made of. I thought maybe you’d learn not to betray me faster this way - the rules are the same as they were back then. No armour. No leaving. No contact with anyone on the outside. And no little plots to try and take me down.” 

Depressed, defiance, depressed, defiance.  _ Make a damn choice.  _ It never used to be this hard. 

“If you behave then maybe they can come down, if not then I will build them until you can’t see the fucking sun.” 

That caught Tommy off guard. He was just about holding it together right now but the idea of those walls getting even a single block higher was enough to make his breathing speed up again. Trapped, he was trapped. 

_ Depressed, defiance, depressed, defiance.  _ By the way Dream was staring at him, it was almost like he expected a response.  _ Dream is never going to take down those walls.  _ But the urge to be  _ good  _ was still there, to appease Dream in any way and maybe delay the beatings a bit. Dream sighed again, this time full of disappointment. 

“You never do learn. Right, you know the drill, give me all your items.”

Wait - yes! Tommy hadn’t even considered his inventory. Dream had taken his armour and sword but he couldn’t get at the items safely locked away in his inventory. Tommy scanned them frantically. There wasn’t much, the rabbit foot he still had to sell, a couple stacks of cobblestone and a single enderpearl. It made him feel stronger, like Techno was next to him, telling Dream to go fuck himself. A small smile appeared on Tommy’s lips as he wrapped his fingers around the pearl. A little piece of home. 

Looks like he was choosing defiance today then. 

Tommy slowly stood, finally lifting his gaze to Dream’s mask. 

“You know what your problem is Dream? Your head is so far up your own arse that sometimes you can be really,  _ really,  _ fucking stupid.” 

And then he chucked the pearl over the wall, giving Dream the finger a split second before he was teleported away. Tommy hit the ground running, a breathless laugh torn away from him by the wind that raced alongside as he sprinted away from Dream and from those hateful walls. The world opened up around him and for the first time since he had woken up, breathing felt light and easy without the obsidian hemming him in from all sides. 

Tommy couldn’t stop grinning, absolute elation filling him.  _ Yeah! Suck it green boy! I aint no kid for you to boss around. I’m the fuckin’ Big Man!  _ Damn. Maybe he should take more pages out of Techno’s book, defiance was so much more fun than depression. It made him feel alive and unstoppable, like he’d taken too many strength potions all at once. 

And then the arrow caught him on the shoulder. It didn’t hurt exactly, but the sluggish feeling that spread through him was enough to make Tommy’s eyes widen. Slowness. Oh  _ shit.  _ Okay, he could get around this, he just needed to be smart about it. Because if Dream caught him now, there would be nothing stopping him beating Tommy to hell. Snatching the cobblestone from his inventory, Tommy twisted to build… anything that would put space between him and Dream. So when the punch caught his cheek, Tommy was completely unprepared. He could get his hands up fast enough to block it and couldn’t get them down fast enough to catch him. 

“What did I say? No leaving. Don’t try and  _ run  _ from me Tommy.” 

“Fuck you.” 

That earned him a kick straight into his ribs. Tommy was aware enough of the drill by now that he had enough sense to curl into a ball before the real beating started. 

“I really don’t want to have to do this to you, but sometimes you honestly leave me no choice.” 

Tommy got it, Dream only hit him when he deserved it, when he’d disobeyed, and what he’d just done was the definition of disobedience. He also knew that fighting back made the punishment worse but when the first blow hit, it was almost everything he could do to stop from lashing back out at Dream.  _ Just let it happen, he’ll be done soon and then he’ll leave.  _ That was how it went. That’s how it always went.  _ Whatever you do, don't beg.  _

Tommy shut his eyes tight against the pain and let it happen. 

___________

Tommy had begged. Near the end, when the agony was too much to withstand, when he’d passed the point of crying out and when he thought he might shatter if this went on. He had opened his eyes and grabbed Dream’s sleeve and  _ pleaded  _ with him to stop. This wasn’t like any normal punishment, it had gone on for far too long and been far too intense. So Tommy had begged and apologised and sobbed and Dream had smiled and ran his hand through Tommy’s hair as he passed him potions of healing and regeneration. He had carried Tommy back over the obsidian walls and deposited him onto a bed as the kid just stared at nothing. 

“I’ll be back tomorrow.” 

**Dream left the game**

Tommy slowly sat up, every muscle in his body protesting at the slight movement. Dream would be back soon, and wouldn’t be pleased if Tommy was still disobedient when he returned. He’d ran from Dream in the woods and Dream had caught him. He’d ran from Dream earlier and Dream had beaten him. The man would probably kill him next time. Maybe if he played along with what Dream wanted, he wouldn’t hurt him. At least until Techno showed up with actual armour and weapons and a plan. 

Tommy stood, making his way over to the wall, hating how weak he was and hating Dream for doing this to him. He placed his fingers on the wall, glaring at it. The rock stared back at him, mocking, a reminder of how powerless he truly was. Truthfully, it would be pretty easy to go through, under or over it, but that would make Dream mad. From now on, Tommy would have to be careful to keep his anger at a minimum, lest Dream thought he was trying to rebel. A few days. That's how long it would take for Techno to come and get him. A few days. Alone. With Dream. 

“Fuck,” Tommy whispered, closing his eyes. He’d used his last enderpearl on a useless escape plan and how he had nothing.  _ No armour. No leaving. No contact with anyone on the outside. And no little plots to try and take me down.  _ Those were the rules and Tommy’s exhausted brain couldn’t be bothered to try and find a loophole. Loopholes were probably banned as well. Maybe if he was really nice to Dream, the man would at least give him some armour. That’d be good. He’d feel a little in control then. But right now Tommy had no choice but to huddle in the dark, waiting for Dream to return. These next few days would be fine - all he had to do was be nice to Dream and not break any of his rules. Simple. It would be  _ fine. _

He could do this. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sure everything will be fine in the next chapter :) nothing will go wrong at all :) don't worry, Tommy will be fine :)

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! If you enjoyed, throw a comment my way to tell me what you thought :)


End file.
